


The Home Stretch

by mightyfinebear



Series: Chicago Med AU [5]
Category: Chicago Med
Genre: Angst, F/M, Fluff, Medical School, Multi, Stalking, Suspense, medcial jargon, newlyweds
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-18
Updated: 2018-07-03
Packaged: 2018-12-31 04:02:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 17,590
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12124104
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mightyfinebear/pseuds/mightyfinebear
Summary: April and Will have been married for a year and a half but not everyone is excited for their surprise nuptials. Not to be fazed the young couple lets happiness take the wheel as April finishes her fourth year of medical school and Will prepares for the boards. Life is going exactly the way it should and everyone should know, and someone in particular does, because he's been watching April for a while.





	1. Family and F-You

**Author's Note:**

> I hate to be that person but you will probably be lost if you didn't at least read In Session or Study Buddies. They are all apart of this series and I have one more part before this series ends.

            “How do I say I want to kiss you? Touch you? Take off your panties?” Will teased over breakfast.

            “Are you going to ask my dad if you can take off his panties?” April asked sarcastically.

Will just laughed as he pictured himself whispering that to her dad at a game. Every Sunday morning was spent like this. Will was constantly quizzing her about all things baseball and she would respond in Spanish. He was hoping to get enough Spanish together to talk to her dad and take him to a ballgame. He needed to show him that he respected him, their culture, and his daughter. April told him he liked baseball and so did Will so he thought it would be a good neutral ground for them to bond. April on the other hand found the game boring so it was a way for them both to learn something new.

They’d married at the courthouse four months after Will proposed in their new home. April’s busy schedule did not allow for a big wedding or even a small one. They married quickly and April was off to school and Will to work. It was romantic for them as they ran to the courthouse, recited their vows, and then kissed, and went their separate directions. None of the technicality had taken away from the way Will felt about April and vice versa.

However, her parents weren’t entirely excited about it. They barely knew Will and when April finally filled them in on everything that had transpired, her parents actually stopped speaking to her for a year. They couldn’t contend with all the huge life events she kept from them. They were angry she’d gotten pregnant out of wedlock, even angrier that she had been pregnant and hadn’t told them. They were not prepared to hear that she had gone back to medical school and was switching careers, but nothing prepared them for the news that their daughter was married. Her dad couldn’t look her in the eye anymore and he kicked them out of the house. The entire exchange happened in Spanish and Will sat there confused and concerned as April grabbed him by the wrist and promptly pulled them out of her parents’ home.

               “Soy mujer adulta! (I am a grown woman),” April shouted, “¿Por qué no puede ser feliz por mí? (Why can’t he be happy for me?),” she fumed “Pendejo! (Asshole).”              

               “April, I’m not sure what you’re saying…I don’t know what anyone said,” Will said sadly.

The introduction to Will’s dad wasn’t any real improvement either. Immediately April could see where he got his curmudgeon side. A near death experience and even an admission of proudness of Will’s accomplishments still wasn’t enough to sway his opinion of the “colored girl” Will brought home. Apparently, according to Will’s father, marriage only ended in heartbreak one way or another and he was glad Will’s mother wasn’t alive to see their son struggle through a micegenated one. Jay had to be the one to step in between the Halstead patriarch and Will. April repeated the action of grabbing Will’s wrist and rushing them out.

            “I am so so so sorry…he’s an ass and a stubborn old bastard but a racist…,” Will said shaking his head back and forth in disbelief as they sat in the car.

            “Hey,” April started, “Neither of our parents are the key to the success of our marriage…me and you? Right?” April finished as she put her hand to his cheek.

            “Me and you,” Will said with a bittersweet smile, “I love you April Sexton, did you know that?”

            “I love you too,” she said with a smile.

“Me and You” it was what they said at the end of their vows and it was inscribed on the inside of their wedding bands. Often it felt like them against the world. A love that had almost crushed them and everyone around them and it felt like it was happening again.

Well, almost, kid brothers could be relied upon. Jay and Noah were both supportive of the union. Noah had teased that she let the big fish go with Connor and if Will wasn’t so careful he could’ve been a millionaire with his concierge medical practice. But all in all, he was grateful to see April content. He knew about the miscarriage and her going back to school. Jay a man of simple words and similar curmudgeon-like behavior thought that April could do better but deep down he was glad to see Will happy and he liked April.

            “You remind me a little of her,” Jay said.

            “Who?” April asked.

            “Our mom,” he answered.

So, April and Will often invited Jay and Noah over for drinks or dinner to feel some kind of familial connection to their matrimony. Playing cards or watching the game on television whatever that may be. April for the most part would be busy with school so it gave Will a great chance to bond with Noah and Jay as a family.

All of that took a year; a year to quell her father’s rage and a year to soothe her mother’s heartbreak at their only daughter not sharing her life with them, and some buttering up from Noah. He’d gotten them to come over for dinner without April’s knowledge. When he saw their stunning brownstone, it appeased his concern for Will’s ability to take care of April and the two soon talked baseball. But too much was lost in translation and every time April’s father had a critique he would say it in Spanish. That was it for Will, he started looking up language apps and learning resources. A month later he would ask her dad to accompany him to a game.

            “Yo quiero tocar tu (I want to touch you),” April said standing up.

She took off her shirt and stalked over to Will.

            “Sho keyero towcar too,” Will clumsily echoed as he stared at her coming over.

            “Yo quiero beso tu (I want to kiss you),” April said standing in front of him.

            “Sho keyero beso tu,” he repeated putting his phone down.

April slid her pants off and stepped out of them.

            “Do you remember the word for panties?” she asked standing almost stark naked save her underwear.

            “Uh…can I phone a friend?” he asked with a smile as he pulled her in by the hips.

            “All life lines are used up,” she teased.

            “Uh okay…Sho keyero tu…panties?” Will said before bursting out laughing.

            “EEEH,” April said making her voice sound like a buzzard.

She pulled away and grabbed her pants.

            “-Wait!” Will said, “C’mon you aren’t just going to put your clothes back on?!”

            “That’s exactly what I’m going to do…you’ve earned a C for the day and this,” she said pointing up and down her body, “Is A material Mr. Halstead,” she sassed as she turned away.

Will smiled and ran behind her; wrapping his arms around her.

            “Actually,” he said planting a kiss on her neck, “It’s _Dr._ Halstead and," he continued as he made his way to the other side of her neck, “What do you call a doctor who’s a C student?”

April rolled her eyes. She’d heard that joke so many times it had lost all its meaning and humor.

            “C’mon,” Will said as he turned her around, “What do you call em’?”

            “Celibate,” she sassed.

            “In love,” he said bending down to kiss her.

Even she couldn’t resist how cute he was being. She kissed him back and didn’t protest as he unhooked her bra. He stopped and stared at her before cupping her jaw in his hands and lightly whispering,

            “Bragas,” he said, “Off.”

April had her eyes closed but she just grinned and followed the command. Will picked her up and spirited her away to their bedroom. Love making was finally fun for them. Not as intense as it had been. Physical love for them was a language and in the past when they spoke to each other this way it had, the first time, been with a confession; the second time with trauma, the third time with rage, and the final time with love. Now it was time for fun.

April giggled as Will continue to trace kisses down her neck. Even with each powerful drive between her legs they laughed, with Will stopping to make a casual joke or even just to take in her face. Happiness was a permanent resident in the Halstead-Sexton house.

No matter what April was always awake after sex. School had completely changed her circadian clock. Will on the other hand always seemed to fall asleep like he’d eaten a large meal. She got out of bed and went to do the dishes before hitting the books for the OB surgical floor. She was in her robe when she smiled at her clothes peppered throughout the living room and into the kitchen. She casually picked them up and headed to the laundry room, she was throwing them in hamper; shirt, jeans, bra, but then she stopped.

            “Bragas,” she whispered to herself.

April walked to the living room and crawled on all fours and looked under the sectional couch. She stood up and looked around. She shook her head wondering where in the world they could’ve gone.

            “Probably stuck to my jeans,” she said.

She quickly knocked out the handful of dirty dishes before making a cup a tea and reviewing procedures and the standard methods for OB surgeons. When she studied it was easy for her to get lost in the work. Her perfectionist people pleasing self was at ease in her fourth year of medical school.                 

            “You’ve been at it for three and half hours,” Will said as he walked up behind her.

He had long been up from his nap and had went running. Usually April would be perched on the couch or at the table with her headphones and immersed in the world of whatever. Every few weeks she was in a different rotation at the hospital.

            “It’s my OB surgical view tomorrow and I want to continue to impress,” April said as she took out an earbud.

April had skyrocketed in her class. She wasn’t afraid to raise her hand and ask thoughtful questions that pushed the pressures of treatment and diagnosis. She wasn’t afraid to try procedures on patients and she had a stellar diagnosis rating. Her time spent as a nurse in the emergency room gave her an advantage. She could handle pressure and stress faster than all the other students and she was never lost because she worked at the hospital prior the internship.

            “Yeah, the chapter was a dead giveaway…um hey we’ve never talked about that,” he started.

            “About what?” April asked.

            “How you’re doing with all the OB stuff, I know we weren’t together but you just never talk about it,” he said softly.

            “What?” April asked confused.

            “Your miscarriage, the possibility of us…and a baby one day,” Will said staring softly at her.

            “Oh,” April said shocked.

            “Obviously not right now, but are you okay?”

            “Yeah, it was so long ago,” April said; her mind going to the memory.

Will bent down to kiss her before walking over to the fridge to get a bottle of water.

            “Do you want me to cook or are we ordering?”

            “Please cook, I can’t handle anymore processed food,” April lamented with a smile.

Will nodded and took a large swig of his water before leaving it on the counter and walking out to the living room.

April went to the hamper and got out her jeans, a bra, and a shirt. She looked in each leg before sliding them up. The panties weren’t in them nor on floor. When she got back into the kitchen Will was chopping vegetables for a salad. April sat back down at the table and jotted down notes and questions about the procedures. She was once again so immersed she didn’t feel Will nudge the book out of the way.

            “Dinner,” he announced.

April smiled and took out her earbuds and pushed her books aside. She poked at the chicken salad he’d made.

            “Not good?” he asked.

            “Oh no, it’s fine,” she said.

Will stared at her as she fiddled with the salad not actually taking any bites. She looked up and saw him staring at her. April smiled before taking in a deep breath and saying,

            “David.”

Will scrunched up his face in confusion.

            “That was my son’s name… a tiny little boy that barely weighed two pounds,” she whispered.

Will eyes softened as he laid his fork down.

            “I never really met him…it’s so strange, he was alive _inside_ me and I never actually met him,” she lamented.

            “No one knew until that day, you hid it well but all I could remember was that was the first time I felt worried about you…it was actually the first time I thought about you and what your life was like,” Will admitted.

April gave him a half-smile.

            “We don’t have to try…or ever try if you don’t want to,” Will started, “ _You_ will always be enough for me.”

            “One day,” she answered with a smile, “I love you.”

            “Me too,” he said leaning over the table to kiss her.

Her appetite emerged a few minutes later and they finished dinner. Will washed the dishes as April went back through her books, highlighting and looking over the procedures again as well as the emergency methods if the surgeries didn’t go as planned. It was pretty standard of her to stay at the kitchen table while Will watched the game or read medical journals or played his guitar on the couch. But Sundays were their day and after dinner they would take a walk or check out a show. Tonight, they decided on a movie while curled up on the couch. April was cleaning up her school work when her missing underwear popped into her head again.

            “Will,” April yelled over to him.

            “Yeah,” he answered turning.

            “Did you take my panties upstairs?”

He smiled but he shook his head no. Will jumped in the shower and April walked upstairs to their bedroom. She looked through the voluminous goosed-down comforter for the pink laced panties but they weren’t there or under the bed or anywhere.

            “That’s weird,” she whispered to herself.

…

**Outside their lovely grey-colored brownstone he watched. Staring intently at the windows hoping to get a glimpse of her. He was getting bolder and bolder by the day and walking into the house the month before had been enough at the time but it wasn’t quelling his addiction; his need. He had to have something of hers, he had to have something that smelled of her. He let the lace pass through his fingers in his pocket as he stared at the brownstone. These would hold him over for another month. Hopefully; soon he’d need more.**


	2. Rainy Days Saturdays Always Get me down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Life is going swimmingly for the pair, they dine with old friends in an effort to remain social and Will wants April to come back to Med to do her residency. Meanwhile we meet some of April's co-workers from U of CM. But The Watcher is getting greedy; reckless, he needs more to feed his insatiable obsession as he ups the creep factor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I've noticed the count on this fic is about the same as the one for Study Buddies which makes me wonder if the same people who read that and In Session are reading this too. I would love to hear from you! Even a hello. Don't be a lurker! Tell me what you like about April and Will. Are you a Will fan? A Sexstead junky like me. Or do you enjoy and support all fanworks for Chicago Med. Drop me a line!

**He was back at his spot again. Like clockwork. If there could be grooves ground into the cement across the street from their brownstone the silhouette from his shoes would be imprinted there. He would stare, not blinking as the tears from his strained eyes fell down his cheeks. But they weren’t tears of pain, sadness, or happiness. They came from glaring; unblinking as he watched the window of her bedroom. It was Saturday and he knew their schedule. He knew that they would be in bed, probably making love before Will went for a run. April would leave not long after to go to study group or to pull an extra shift at the hospital. And there he would wait and summon his courage; a courage fired by rage and obsession, to go into their home and take something. Anything really, but always something of hers.**

**“** I mean you could at least think about it right?” Will begged slyly.

The mist of sweat glistened against their bodies as they lay naked and twisted up in the sheets of their bed. April let out a loud sigh.

            “I don’t know I mean…I don’t know,” April admitted.

            “You left because things had been too tense for us, but that’s not the case anymore and…I miss you, I miss working with you,” Will admitted.

He was using the tip of his finger to draw invisible circles alongside her shoulder. April was staring at his chest. She missed Maggie, Sarah, Sharon, really all the familiar faces of Gaffney, but Connor and Natalie were still there. Will had made peace with them a long time ago but it was different for April. She had betrayed her closest friend and colleague. Natalie was supportive through her entire pregnancy, miscarriage, and broken heart, and she repaid her by lying to her, having sex with her boyfriend in an on-call room at the very hospital Will wanted her to return to, and of course ultimately marrying him. She had tried to smooth things over. She would send her happy holidays and birthday texts and Natalie would thank her but it was never the same. They never hung out or had a real conversation after April left. As for Connor the two hadn’t spoken in almost two years.

            “Everyone asks about you all the time…they miss you too,” Will said.

            “Do you think they could even see me as a doctor? I was a nurse there for years…it’s just... I don’t know; maybe it’s been too long,” she lamented.

            “Change can come from anywhere, Natalie was named Chief Resident yesterday while Ethan is on suspension and everyone listened to her like she held the title the entire time…you could be Chief Resident you know.”

            “Natalie...,” April started, “We don’t talk and she would be over my head, you would be over hers, and Connor would be over yours, and the entire thing still makes my skin crawl a little,” April admitted.

            “Al, it’s been two years, Connor has a girlfriend and Natalie seems fine to me,” he said, “Just don’t put the nail in the coffin of Med just yet…please,” he said as he brought her hand to his lips and kissed it.

She smiled and nodded but she was truly unsure. U of CM had become home and she had a new team who had become family. They knew her as a nurse for six months before she became a medical student there and with the last of her internship upon her she would need to match soon and find a residency. The entire battle to get back into school and catch up had been the single greatest challenge of her life. The school understood what she went through but they couldn’t just let her slide. She had to make up a year’s amount of work in six months. There were fights from crankiness and late nights and twenty-hour work days filled with bloodshot eyes.

She’d dropped ten pounds she lost from almost nowhere but she persevered and landed in the top ten students, then five, and then nuzzled her way to number three. Her internship was shaping up nicely and she would be number two after this rotation. Her reputation was stellar and her work was impeccable.

Will normally fell asleep after they made love but on Saturday mornings he forced himself up and went running. April got in the shower. They were going to meet Keerie and Ryan for brunch this morning before April’s study group. She got in the shower and went downstairs to the laundry room to get the clothes she’d left in the dryer. The creaking of the floor boards in the kitchen made her pause and then pop her head over.

            “Will?...Babe are you back?” she asked.

No one was there even though she could’ve sworn she heard someone. She strolled into the kitchen and grabbed a glass of water. She turned and the faintest smell graced her nose; a scent she didn’t recognize; that of a musky cologne. She stopped and looked around as an uneasiness flooded her. She shook her head and the thought away. They lived in a nice neighborhood and there was nothing to worry about. Will got in moments later and took a quick shower as the pair strolled to “Tweets” to get breakfast with their friends.

            “So, April when do you start your residency so we can see you guys more than once every two months?” Keerie asked.

            “After graduation…and I know I wish I could hang out more, with everyone to be honest, but it’s getting…better?” April said laughing with uncertainty; trying to convince herself of the progress.

She knew it was just getting more intense and the pressure was constantly on. Her phone buzzed.

It was Alex one of the study group members.

            _“Are we still on?”_ it read.

She tapped a quick yes and put her phone away. Will eyed the move. He didn’t care for Alex. Alex was only the guy he knew that was in the study group and he knew he liked April. Will didn’t like the way he stared at her when he didn’t think anyone was looking; and after everything she went through with Parker he stared back at him to let him know that he could see him watching April.

            “Sorry about that, I have to meet my study group right after this…anyway how are things at your firm Keerie?”

Keerie was a legal librarian, it was how she met Ryan. She worked amazing hours and was always over the moon.

            “Good, very good,” she smiled, “Probably too good which is why I’m always hounding you to get lunch with me," she laughed.

            “Yeah time’s a tickin’ Sexton!” Ryan quipped.

April looked at him confused.

            “Is someone dying?” April teased.

            “Ryan…I thought we weren’t saying anything yet,” she mumbled.

            “Saying what?” Will asked intrigued.

            “Well we were hoping to get together with you guys more often because Keerie and I are moving, we’re looking for homes right now,” Ryan announced.

            “Oh no we’re losing you guys?” April lamented.

            “Just to the burbs,” Keerie said.

            “Why the burbs?” Will asked as he brought his coffee mug up to his mouth.

Ryan just grinned and looked over to Keerie.

            “Are you pregnant?” April asked with a smile.

            “It’s really early but yeah,” she answered smiling.

April got up and gave her a hug. Will nodded towards Ryan.

            “Congratulations man,” he said.

April sat down and the smallest twinge of sadness intruded her emotions. She didn’t want children anytime soon and literally had no time for any but it brought it back into her mind again.

Will noticed and leaned over to whisper in her ear.

            “You are always enough me.”

He pulled her in and then kissed the top of her head. They finished brunch, paid, and made empty promises to get together before another two months passed. Will walked April to the subway before heading back to the brownstone.

April’s study group consisted of Sunni the funny intern April had met when she first started U of CM. She was in her first year of residency but she came nonetheless because April was known to be an amazing study partner. Her groups were legendary if you could get into them. Sunni had talked her into letting her class rival Cecily Hattick join too. Cecily was English like Sunni and the two had met in undergrad at Cambridge. They were best friends but Cecily hated April. She was the star of their class until April barreled back in climbing her way up in record time, everyone adored April and the instructors were in awe of her.

Cecily and Sunni couldn’t have been more different. Cecily was buttoned-up, chaste; almost frigid, girl from Brighton. She always wore her hair tightly pinned, ascots, turtlenecks, and scarves, were her uniform. One would wonder if she was a practicing religious conservative, her church; knowledge, her diet; nothing processed, her bible; the book of Gray’s Anatomy.She was pale, short, and a little chubby, nothing to look at with her mousy brown hair and plain features, but she was brilliant. She didn’t have the experience April did and that was the reason she was edged out.

Sunni on the other hand was a dark skinned Southeast Asian, she was beautiful with her chestnut-colored eyes, deep-flawless complexion and thick sable hair. She was athletically built and whenever she and April walked together heads turned. Her bright smile was matched only by her roaring laughter and quick wit. She could talk a mile a minute and every study session was marked with a date, a hook-up, or a pending crush with some man she’d just met.

Finally, Alex had asked to join. He was handsome in a small way if that was a thing. He was a bit shorter than April, wiry, but he had beautiful sharp blue eyes, milky skin, and chiseled features. He was a little shy, smart, but insecure in his thoughts. He could rarely get it together around April and gawked at her longer than Will liked but April barely notice.

They met every Saturday at the hospital’s library and sometimes for coffee during the week after their rotations began; usually to swap notes over doctor’s personalities, expectations, and overall experiences in each wing of the hospital. April was the first to get there. She found a table large enough for the group by a set of soaring windows. She could see across the campus and she watched as a rain storm blew in. Not long after she’d arrived Sunni was running in, her shirt clinging to her as dots of water stained her leather satchel.

            “Why are you looking so lovingly at this bloody storm for?” she asked April as she tried to dry herself.

            “Just a memory,” April said.

            “Ooh I know those memories! I once shagged my riding instructor in a barn when a flash storm interrupted my lesson…so he made sure I still got one,” she laughed.

April laughed and shook her head.

            “What was yours?” she asked.

April shook her head again.

            “Oh c’mon. Come off it.”

April smiled sheepishly.        

            “The first time Will and I made love it was a storm like this, it blew in out of nowhere and just kept going for hours. It knocked out the power and there was this minor brown out…I gave him a candle and he asked me to stay in his room. So, I guess you could say every storm carries a little bit of us in it,” she said smiling.

            “I think storms are ghastly. I absolutely hate this weather.”

Her voice was like nails on a chalkboard to April. Sunni turned and gave her two quick kisses on both cheeks.

            “Cecily…,” April said flatly.

They walked to the table and opened their bags. Alex shuffled in a few moments later and they got down to business. The storm rattled and rumbled outside and after a few hours it seemed as if it was not going to let up. April sent Will a text and he arrived twenty minutes later to pick her up.

            “Are sure you don’t want to ride with us?” Sunni asked Cecily.

            “Oh no, as tempting as it is to get into Cinderella’s carriage Alex offered to take me home,” Cecily answered bitterly.

April rolled her eyes as Will pulled up and Sunni and April took off to the car.

            “Hey if it isn’t Sunni,” Will announced as she settled into the backseat.

            “William,” she answered comically.

They dropped her at a bar where she was meeting a date. April and Will made their way home. Often Sunni came over and had dinner at least once a week, but not tonight. Normally her dates were on Friday and she had a raunchy or hilarious story to tell before they began studying but this one was on Saturday night.

April and Will got in and made sandwiches for dinner and then curled up on the couch with beers and a movie. Premiums were due soon so Will had to work a double on Sunday so they switched their date night.

            “Remind me why I let you pick this emotional horror movie?” Will asked.

            “Gone Girl is an amazing cautionary tale of the power of pain, disappointment, and what anger can do to a scorned partner,” April lectured.

            “You don’t think this is a bit much? I mean adultery is a hard pill to swallow but to frame someone for murder and ruin their lives...not to mention I don’t think this guy that’s helping her is going to be safe much longer either,” Will answered; his voice concerned but humorous.

            “Of course it’s too much, but you have to hand it to her, it’s pretty brilliant, I mean not only did she plan this entire thing, but the patience she had to manipulate so many people… I mean the level of commitment,” April laughed as she got up to grab them another round.

            “I guess,” Will said shaking his head as he took the last swish of his beer.

April was standing in the kitchen when she thought of the uneasiness she felt earlier.

            “Hey,” she started as she pulled the bottles from the fridge, “Did you forget something, like your headphones when you went running this morning?” she asked as she plopped down next to him on the sofa.

            “No…why?’ Will asked as he popped open the top on his beer.

            “It’s just earlier I got out of the shower and I swore I heard the floorboards creak…like someone was here,” she said looking at the television, but past it, through it.

            “Maybe it was Alex,” Will started.

            “Are you really going to bring this up again?”

            “I just don’t like the way the guy looks at you. He gives me the creeps,” Will admitted.

            “He doesn’t give me the creeps,” April said, “He’s harmless;shy.”

Will opened his mouth and then closed quickly and brought his beer to it.

            “What?” April asked turning to him.

He shook his head no.

            “Will!”

            “I’ve learned to bite my tongue here, okay,” he grumbled.

            “What? It’s fine, really, he’s harmless and I honestly have never seen what you’ve seen.”

            “Let’s just drop it okay.”

April scoffed and sat back and the two finished the movie in silence. When it ended the silence followed them upstairs as they got ready for bed. The harsh quiet hung in the room as they brushed their teeth and then made their way to the bed. Will finally stopped and grabbed April’s hand and pulled her to him. He brought both his hands up to her face; cradling it.

            “The last time I felt this way about a guy he almost killed you…us...I just I don’t trust people the way I used to and not with the people who are the most important to me.”

April wrapped her hands around his wrists.

            “You felt that way about Connor at one point too,” she said with a half-smile.

He mirrored her smile and pulled her forehead down to give her a kiss. They got into bed and spooned and April realized for the first time the amount of trauma that had been absorbed by Will during that time. She’d robbed him of an ability to heal with her when she was in therapy and they never spoke again about how the experience had affected him.

Lucky for them all of that was in the past and she didn’t need to worry about it. They were happy now and she was safe; in his arms; where she belonged.

…

**And in those arms, is how he watched her. He’d been so close; he was playing with fire, going into the house when she was there, but this was the second time he’d done it. The adrenaline rush was too intoxicating; too addicting. He needed more so he got more. The tiny camera was perched in the ceiling towards the bed. He laid in own bed as he twirled his fingers through her pink lace panties. Watching the object of his obsession; his ire. After all it was movie night.**

 


	3. I Always Feel Like Somebody's Watching Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> April is the standout among the interns and she has caught the eye of a legendary trauma surgeon. But still eyeing her is The Watcher and after seeing her lie to Will, he will begin concocting a plan to bring forth what he believes is her true nature.

On Wednesdays Will still met Connor to play a game of pick-up against their favorite dentists. April _definitely_ stayed away from that. The wounds had healed, but she’d never really gotten over the shame she felt over her treatment of Connor. It just felt easier to stay away. So those nights Sunni came over for a girl’s night. They’d either order dinner or cook. A richness of heritage and hilarity influenced the cuisine and conversation.

            “I have always wondered that!” April exclaimed as she filled the dishwasher.

During their conversation they’d stumbled upon an old story and the origin of Sunni’s friendship with Cecily.

            “Yeah it was a tattoo shop, but they did piercings too,” Sunni admitted, “She helped me pick out Prickles here,” she said pointing to the small earring in her upper lobe.

It looked like a flail but flattened on one side to fit its purpose.

“What was she doing _there_? Finally getting her ears pierced?” April jabbed.

            “Now, now, be nice. You know she wasn’t always like this,” Sunni lectured, at the table sipping her glass of wine.

            “Me?! Be nice?!” April said turning to her as she placed a plate in the dishwasher, “She’s the one who hates me!”

Sunni frowned, April didn’t like putting Sunni in the middle of their rivalry. So, April quickly spoke so she didn’t have to.

            “So, what _was_ she getting pierced?” April asked.

Sunni’s eyes went wide and then normalized as it was clear she was going to play coy.

            “I’ll tell you if you tell me why you didn’t return to school for almost a year,” Sunni answered.

April only froze for a moment and drew in any tells from her face that may have given away any truth of the subject.

            “I already told you, I needed a break,” April answered casually.

 Sunni stared at her and rolled her eyes in frustration. It wasn’t the first time she pressed April for more details. She’d always given this vague answer, but Sunni always wanted more detail, more everything.  

            “That was the cursed year alright,” Sunni continued still looking at April,” Everyone changed…,” she finished as she looked down to her wine glass.

She was right, April’s ordeal, as horrific as it was, wasn’t the only thing that marked that class as cursed. There were seventy-five dropouts, three suspensions, four expulsions for a cheating ring, a scandalous affair with one student and a professor, and fire in one of the labs. It had thinned the herd in a way no one in the school had seen since the sixties; during the draft. It had made the soon-to-be graduating class incredibly small and viciously competitive.

            “So, Cecily changed huh?” April asked switching the subject.

            “Nice switch-up and yeah, she used to be a little more vivacious than she is now, school has changed her a lot...,” Sunni said taking another sip of her wine.

The door swung open and a sweat-drenched Will appeared.

            “Al! I’m home,” he yelled.

            “Hi honey,” Sunni teased in a sing-songy voice.

Will smiled when he heard her voice. Sunni loved to tease him and flirt with him in a playful-way. It was a long running gag since she walked up to him and tried to pick him up not realizing he was April’s fiancé. April didn’t care it was funny to her too.

            “Ooh look at you all hot and sweaty,” she started as she fanned herself, “Tossing the ball around with that dashing Dr. Rhodes again?” Sunni inquired.

            “It’s Wednesday,” he said concisely as he grabbed a banana from the table.

            “We saved you some, it’s in the fridge,” April mentioned.

Will nodded and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek before heading upstairs.

            “Well, I guess I’ll let the lovebirds have their space,” Sunni replied.

She still had that curious look on her face as she brought up April’s absence, but April was back to business.

            “Hey! Before you leave who do we have tomorrow?” April asked.

            “Howard, he was head of the largest and busiest emergency room in the United States before coming to U of CM to teach,” Sunni started.

            “What else do we know about him?” April asked.

            “Well….,” Sunni started

 **Target:** Dr. Wilks Howard, MD, LPM and head of Emergency Medicine at U of CM

 **Nickname:** The MacGyver

 **Legend:** Once performed surgery in the dark with just a ten-blade, a McDonald’s cup, and a balloon. Undergrad at Northwestern, Harvard for Medical School, and John Hopkins for Residency.

            “Alright, let’s get em’!” April said putting her hands together and opening her laptop.

Sunni saw herself out and headed home. April was googling Dr. Howard and scanning over the medical journals he authored, edited, and co-wrote, she archived his footnotes, found newspaper articles detailing his heroics and bios, and tried to find the name of his attending when he was at John Hopkins.

            “Why are you in _that_ database?” Will asked leaning over April’s shoulder.

            “There are hundreds of names here but I’m trying to find the active attendings in the 1970’s. I want to see if I can find Dr. Howard’s,” April answered trailing off into her search.

Will stared at the screen as the names flipped across quickly.

            “That reminds me,” he started, “I think that I’m going to have to cancel this game with your dad.”

April stopped and sighed. They had been making such progress and it was bad enough that they were going to an off-season minor league game because work had gotten in the way of the last few games he’d wanted to attend.

            “Por que? (why),” April asked.

            “I got a call from a CNA who works at Dr. Rowan’s nursing home and she isn’t doing too well. I want to visit her…just in case,” Will answered sadly.

April stood up and wrapped her arms around him, “Oh, Will I’m so sorry.”

He squeezed her hand and then got up to heat up his food. April continued her obsessive search and spent another three and half hours reading through Dr. Howards’ procedures and research. Will retired to bed.

April didn’t even realize the time, but her head was down on the kitchen table as the video continued to play as a background to her nap. She had her earphones in and she must’ve dozed off while listening to a lecture she’d found on YouTube; given by Dr. Howard at a medical conference.

She raised her head up and let out a low groan over the soreness in her neck. She inhaled deeply, stretching, as she stopped the video and took out her headphones. But suddenly she froze; because inhaled into her nostrils wasn’t just the sticky jam not cleaned up from the table, or even the lingering scents of garlic and curry from her and Sunni’s dinner, but a powerful musk. The odor was eerily close to the one she smelled the other day. The ascension of her heart rate jarred her completely awake. The unnerving feeling made the hairs on the back of her neck stand at attention. It was midnight and the entire house was quiet. Her eyes darted around nervously, and she got up quickly. With a mild trepidation she walked to front door; it was secured.

            _“Will must’ve locked it before he went upstairs,”_ April thought.

She took a deep breath in and shook the feeling off, convincing herself that the late nights and obsessive studying were making her paranoid, but perhaps too quickly. She rubbed her arms up and down trying to get the goosebumps to subside as she slogged her way upstairs to curl up next to her husband.  It was a shame though, because she should’ve checked the _back_ door.

…

**His leg bobbed under the table impatiently. He’s been staring obsessively at the screen for hours. Will was in bed, but his wife hadn’t joined him yet. Not knowing where she was or what she was doing filled him with anxious rage. Finally, unable to quell his curiosity and control he grabbed his coat and sped over to the brownstone. He walked the familiar route of the river-rock on the side of the home; always careful not leave foot prints. It was through the window he saw her; through his rage-colored glasses, he viewed his prey. Angry she wasn’t where he could watch her. And it was anger that made him boldly open the door and walk towards her. She hadn’t moved an inch as he let his hand lightly graze a tendril of her hair. He could do it now; it’d be so easy. He could grab one of her kitchen knives from the butcher block and stab her in the head. The idea of her blood and bits of grey matter staining the walls of her perfect home were deliciously convenient. Overkill they’d say. But it would deny him what he really wanted. He steadied the shaking in his hands as the wrath he felt threatened to compromise his control. He slowly walked backwards; keeping his target in sight before shutting the door. He needed more cameras.**

….

The next morning Will was off to work, and April was headed in the opposite direction to intern. They exchanged a couple of quick kisses and “I love yous” before beginning their commutes.

 

April felt good about the intern tour in the emergency room. And she had good reason; it was home. Not only did the staff know her because she had worked there as a nurse, she had so much experience at Gaffney beforehand. It was time to shine. They all met with Dr. Howard as he started the shadow of rounds from bed to bed. Normally the drill would be to disclose each case, with the patient’s permission of course, and then source the interns for answers. April, Cecily, and sometimes Alex shot their hands up first. Often Alex was wrong, with Cecily coming in for the save, but almost always April was either called upon or had her hand up to answer the question and she was always correct. The other five students might as well have been cardboard cutouts.

            “Adam Mills, forty-five years old came in complaining of abdominal pain, and pain in the shoulder, after eating. His tox screen came back clean with nominal elevation in white cell count. Slight fever; some chills.

            “Alex,” Dr. Howard’s voiced boomed, “Thoughts?”

            “Um- stomach flu or fo-food poisoning?” he squeaked.

            “Mr. Murray when was the last time you had pain in your shoulder while having the flu?” he quizzed him.

            “-Uh…” Alex stuttered.

            “Cecily?” Dr. Howard asked brushing off Alex.

            “Early stages of a heart attack or possible heart failure,” she answered.

            “Better, even better if he was a woman,” Dr. Howard stated disappointingly.

April casually put up her finger. He nodded her way to let her answer.

            “The yellowing around his eyes suggests poor liver function and pain in the shoulder and abdomen suggests either a liver problem but more than likely it’s his gallbladder.”

            “Nice, and how did you ascertain all of that might I ask Ms. Sexton?”

            “I think it helps to actually _look_ at the patient, and from the placing of his hand on his stomach that’s where the gallbladder rests, but I’d contact an endocrinologist to verify,” she answered casually.

            “Then please do, and good work Ms. Sexton.”

Cecily rolled her eyes and April walked over to a free phone to page the endocrinologist. Dr. Howard kept talking and April put in the call. She knew the hospital like the back of her hand, so she knew who would be on call and what database to look in. She’d already typed up the order when she heard the rundown of the next patient.

            “Almost Ms. Hattick, but can anyone tell me what she missed?”

            “Without his blood work or a proper history, the reaction to that particular drug would be fatal,” April stated confidently.

            “Another correct answer Ms. Sexton,” Dr. Howard started, “Let’s break for lunch.”

Continuing to be impressed by April; Dr. Howard invited her to join him at his table.

            “I don’t think I’ve ever had an intern answer so many questions correctly,” Dr. Howard remarked as he took a bite of his sandwich.

            “I used to be a nurse, but I work really hard,” April said as she took a stab at her salad, “I want to be the best…you know good enough to save a man’s life in the dark with a balloon-good,” April finished with a smile before popping a piece of chicken in her mouth.

            “You’ve done your homework on me,” he said surprisingly.

            “All that hard work wouldn’t be from the break you took?” he questioned.

April swallowed dryly. She had become quite good at hiding her expression when the topic was brought up.

            “I do my homework too Ms. Sexton.”

April gave him a nervous half-smile. His pager went off and he looked down.

            “Ah, the endocrinologist has his findings; finish up here and join me for the results. We can find out if you’re right,” he answered measuredly.

April nodded excitedly as he stood up and threw his tray away. She scarfed down what was left of her salad. But before she could rush off she saw Alex and a few of the other interns gathered around the flat screen. It was a press conference and the voices were familiar. Goodwin and Connor.

            “Wow a panda, man I would love to go into cardiothoracic surgery and do cool stuff like that,” one intern commented.

            “Yeah if all the fellows looked like that we’d all be there!” A girl remarked.

            “Didn’t April date him?” Alex asked Cecily.

            “Oh of course Sex-Everyone-Sexton dated him,” Cecily said snidely.

            "Bitterness isn’t a good look on you Can’t Hack-it Hattick,” April answered; throwing her food away.

This; this was the exact reason she could never return to Med. It was bad enough to have all the awkwardness there but even in a new hospital she couldn’t get away from her past. The reminder added some pep to her step as she walked to Mr. Mills’ room.

            “You were correct Ms. Sexton,” Dr. Howard stated.

            “Yes, but medicine alone won’t treat this; he’ll need surgery,” the endocrinologist stated.

            “Will you do it Dr. Howard?” April asked.

He nodded, “And you can watch.” He said before walking out.

April excitedly took off to schedule the surgery. They gave Adam some medication to manage his pain and a strict diet to ready him for his impending operation. April continued riding her wave of achievement and standing out amongst the interns. The gallstone removal would be a great observation for her to toy with the residency she wanted.

She caught the train home and immediately took a shower when she arrived. It was always a nice way to decompress and to get the ick of the hospital off her. She slid on some short shorts and a tank top with an oversized cardigan. She was in the fridge trying to weigh what she wanted to do with her time. Will wouldn’t be home yet, and she was a little burned out on studying. She had another twenty-four hours before she needed to review procedures for the gallbladder surgery. So, she plopped on the couch and cracked open a beer and heated up leftovers. She was flipping through the channels trying to find something to veg-out to when she realized someone was at the door.

            “Alex?”

            “Hey April, I know we don’t meet again until this weekend, but I need help,” he begged.

April gave him a half-smile and let him in. Alex blushed at her attire and the mile-long mahogany legs crossed on her coffee-table as she sat explaining to him how she knew the diagnosis earlier. He only stayed for an hour, but April offered him a beer as the two-discussed work and ultimately her exchange with Cecily.

            “So, you dated Connor Rhodes?”

            “Yep,” April answered succinctly before bringing her beer to her mouth.

            “What’s he like?”

April exhaled deeply.

            “Smart, charismatic, a little stubborn, but a good guy.”

            “What was Med like?”

            “It’s a great hospital to work at; why all the questions?”

            “I don’t think U of CM is where I belong,” he admitted.

            “Just keeping working at it,” she encouraged.

Alex shrugged nonchalantly and gave her a smile. She walked him out with a quick wave and a reassuring pat on the back. Moments later Will arrived.

            “Al!” he yelled.

He looked over to the living room to see the television on, and two beers sitting on the coffee table. April emerged from the bathroom.

            “Hey, how’s Dr. Rowan?” she asked as she got on her tip-toes to give him a quick kiss.

            “She’s not doing too well, it could be any day now,” he replied soberly.

April walked over to the coffee table to collect the empty beer bottles. The chore caught Will’s attention.

            “Was Sunni over?” he inquired.

April stopped suddenly as she threw the bottles in the recycling.

            “Uh-no I just got lazy and didn’t clean up after myself,” she lied.

Will nodded. She didn’t want to fight about Alex again. Will was already upset enough about Dr. Rowan; there was no need to bring up that old battle with no winners. They curled up on the couch and vegged out until Will nudged April awake and the two retired to their bedroom.

*******

**She lied. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar.Liar.Liar.Liar.Liar.Liar.Liar.Liar.Liar.Liar.Liar.Liar.Liar.Liar.Liar.Liar.Liar.**

**Whore.**


	4. “Somewhere between a lie and the truth is a mistake.”

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> April is doing her best to juggle work, helping Alex, and lying to Will. But with someone watching her every move it is only a matter of time before she is caught in her white lie. Worried it won't be enough to destroy her, The Watcher has planned far worse for her.

**He couldn’t tell the difference between courage and temerarious action anymore, but he knew he didn’t have any fear of what might happen. He was making visits inside the Halstead-Sexton home almost every day. He no longer wanted to just play in her presence, to bask in her smell or glare at her pictures while oninating in their bed. No, he was finally ready. No longer wanting to be the omnipotent invisible hand who only watched his child; meddling in measure to make her question his existence. He was ready to strike his first blow.**

There are times when the second city earns its peace. Unlike New York, the city that never sleeps, there were patches of quiet in the early morning of Chicago’s most popular boroughs. With slower traffic and slightly serene streets while most slept. But April was up, and up earlier than Will as he still dozed in bed. The double he pulled the day before had wiped him out. He couldn’t hear her get out of bed. But it wasn’t just the exhaustion that didn’t rouse him; April was purposely being quiet.

She had agreed to meet Alex alone at a coffee-shop before work began. The Chicago air against her face should’ve been the stark wake-up she needed but it just served as a reminder that she'd rather be in bed enjoying the warmth of her blankets, her husband, her integrity. She wasn’t going to be truthful about this meeting either. Will’s insistence that there had to be something wrong with Alex was enough. She never had the grey feelings inside with Alex that she had with Parker. He was just so scared and insecure in his studies. His vulnerability and helplessness reminded her of Noah, his ever-constant need, but a capable doctor. A person begging to be released; but still in desperate need of assistance.

            “I bought you coffee…an extra shot… a red-eye is wh-what she called it,” Alex said stumbling.

April gave him a half-smile and slid the coffee to her side of the table.

            “So, I found this study,” April began as she pulled out of her laptop, “It’s a composite of confirmed diagnostics in different ED’s in the Midwest, it shows cases where the patients needed surgeries; only medication, as well as mortality rates.”

            “Uh- okay,” Alex answered almost disappointed,

April exhaled in frustration, “Do you know why I brought this?”

Alex shook his head no.

            “Look at the dates.”

April watched Alex eye the screen closely. She stared at him patiently until it seemed like he still wasn’t getting it.

            “There are patterns here that are indicative to seasonal conditions, holidays, and the weather Alex… it’s helpful with diagnostics. I was thinking about that the other night, one of the reasons I was able to diagnose the gallbladder patient was because it’s cold which means comfort food and often comfort foods are high in fat.”

Alex slumped defeated.

            “See, this is why I need your help, I would’ve killed someone by now if I wasn’t following your lead.”

            “It’s just the internship, but you are going to have to step it up next year for residency.”

            “If I even get one…,” Alex fretted.

            “You will. Have you made any decisions about what program you want to match to?” April asked as she sipped her warm coffee.

            “At this rate…pathology,” Alex whined.

April gave him another pitied half-smile.

            “I have a friend who thought that was the right path for her too, but she was wrong. Listen, we can keep meeting outside the study group until you start to get more comfortable, but this early morning time is rough.”

Alex laughed and nodded. The two continued for another hour before heading over to the hospital.

 …

Will rolled over into the empty spot next to him. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes he turned to the clock; it was a barely seven. He got up to use the restroom but his expectations of April in the shower were let down. He went downstairs to make coffee, but she wasn’t perched at the table studying either. However, on the table was a note.

            _“_ _Went on a run, then to work,”_

                        _Love, Al._

Will stared at the note; the writing, as if it were foreign. April didn’t run. Yoga every now and again but she’d been blessed with remarkable genes, but stamina and endurance… for cardio? Those were not her pleasure. Will’s fingers tapped the letter as if it could reveal the intention behind her curious new activity.

 Two cups of coffee allowed him to follow April’s lead and go for a run too. The cool air gliding past his skin as the trees, concrete, and parked cars stretched past his vision in almost dizzying speeds. The runners high would be right around the corner, past the CVS, past the bar, and the rotted-sweet smells of beer, there it was. It opened its arms to embrace its son. He couldn’t hear his heart beat anymore just the pull and expulsion of air as each breath lifted him higher. He could fly here, as determination met stride and excitement. However, the next curve was always the hardest and that’s when freedom became chains and the rhythm of his heart forced him to slow down and think. He would think about the patients he lost; fractured sentences of Spanish and English. Always stumbling. Baseball, hockey, Bella.

 He thought about Bella Rowan. How she had unwittingly taken the role of his mother while he was in school. She was smart, exceptional really, in her practice of medicine. Her tenacity had led him to pursue his focus to trauma. He’d finished his boards right around the same time April graduated. It was the zenith of a million goals to pay homage to his mother. A new horizon for medicine but the continuation of his legacy in honor of his _surrogate_ mother; Dr. Rowan. Will would see her later in the week usually in the evening.  She had more moments of lucidity later in the day and they could talk coherently about medicine, trade stories about patients, and they also discussed him and his love for his new wife.

Will got out of the shower and began dressing for work. He quickly made the bed but then the strangest thing happened. He didn’t know how or why but the smallest hair caught his attention. Perhaps it was the adrenaline still flowing through his veins or just the dichotomy of the white pillowcase but there it was. It wasn’t curly or kinky as to be April’s and it didn’t catch the light with its coppery-shine to be his. It was a brown hair. He examined it longer than he realized. It was in their bed.

            “Transference,” he mumbled as he tossed it aside.

…

            “You guys got here early,” Sunni observed.

She was lacing up her tennis-shoes to get ready for rounds. Sunni was already a resident, but a first year. She didn’t need to worry about the competition, but she was always around; helping, monitoring, and sometimes acting as a referee for the bickering and usually snide comments given off by Cecily towards April.

             “I’m trying to help Alex catch up,” April stated.

            “You can’t hold everyone’s hand April,” Sunni said; rolling her eyes.

She didn’t personally have anything against Alex, but she could see the sacrificial nature April had and the very real bags under her eyes from the early morning meeting.

            “He’s not doing _that_ poorly. Alex just lacks confidence, he was ready to _quit_.”

            “Maybe he should. I mean it’s not going to get easier.”

April raised her eyebrow over to her.

            “He has his residency to catch up and depending on what he decides to match with he could end up a vital asset; in a really great program.”

            “And thank the ever-suffering Dr. April Sexton for his success.”

            “Whatever Sunni.”

Sunni just shrugged as they walked out to join the rest of the team. Rounds continued in their usual way. There weren’t many cases that day for anyone to really shine or stick one’s foot in. Just a lot of scut work, observation, and some small patch jobs. The interns had barely earned their lunches as they all sat around the table eating.

            “ _He_ is tonight,” Sunni started as she turned her phone to April and Cecily, “A body like a God, a degree from Northwestern, and tickets to the opera… _if_ I can get Joanne to switch with me tonight.”

            “That means you’ll have to pull an extra two nights this week,” Cecily lectured.

            “He’ll be worth it, I haven’t seen a man this good looking in a while…you know he kind of reminds me of someone...I can’t remember who…,” Sunni said angling the picture on the phone around different ways to try and get multiple views to jog her memory.

            “It would be nice if there were more guys in this group,” Alex mumbled.

Everyone ignored him as they finished lunch and the rest of their shifts. Everyone except Sunni. Joanne wouldn’t switch so she had to cancel her date and pull a later shift. The rest of them collected their things and took off.

April got in and heated up a cup of soup before the warmth; the long day, and the early morning put her to bed. Will got home an hour after, she was passed out, and he curled up next to her. There were days like this when they didn’t see each other much. Usually she would have been awake but her early morning call time was waiting the next day.

…

Will got up early the following morning, but it still wasn’t early enough because April was already gone. Will wanted to ask her if they could run together, but he hadn’t gotten the chance. He took a longer run this morning simply because he had the time. He had the day off. He was forced to because of the double he pulled two nights prior. When he got back he immediately headed up to the shower. He sat down on the bed to put his socks on when his necklace came off and hit the floor. The clasp was loose again. He got on all fours to retrieve it from under the bed when it happened again. He wasn’t sure why, but his eyes darted to a dark spot under the bed. There shoved into a corner were April’s sneakers. Not the ones she wore for work but her workout sneakers. Will sat up and stared quietly across the bed. An unsettling feeling was growing inside him.

            _“What is going on Al?”_ Will thought to himself.

He threw some random ingredients into their crock-pot and went about his day. The sneakers popping up in his mind like Poe’s heart in the floor.

Time seems to move faster when you want to sloth around all day. At least that’s what it felt like when April opened the door and it was already almost six. Will was stretched on the couch doing a crossword puzzle as the television played for no one.

            “Mmm something smells wonderful,” she announced.

            “That would-be dinner,” Will replied as he sat up.

He causally strolled over and helped her take off her jacket and then gave her a kiss. They sat down to eat immediately.

            “Are you beyond sore yet?” Will asked with a smirk.

April looked at him confused.

            “I was dead every day when I started with Ryan; especially when I didn’t have the right shoes.”

            “Will, what are you talking about?”

            “Running, how are you doing with it?”

April stared at him completely muddled; a beat too long too, when she realized it was the stupid lie she made up.

            “-Oh yeah… no I’ve been taking it easy,” she answered as her eyes glazed over.

Will just casually gazed at her as she avoided his eyes. It was playful at first, but then it happened again, he didn’t know why but his eyes went to her lips and the way she would chew on the bottom one nervously when she was hiding something. He began to open his mouth when his phone rang.

            “Hello… speaking…I’ll be right there.”

            “Will?”

            “It’s Dr. Rowan, she’s been taken to the ED.”

He quickly got up and grabbed his coat and sped over to the hospital. Natalie oversaw her care as he stayed through the night; by her side, and then woke up in a chair and had to start his shift.

…

April texted Will before she went to lay down. A better wife would’ve been by his side, but she was exhausted, and he understood. She’d only met Bella once and it was on a “good day” a day where she could actually remember Will. He texted back that he would be late or maybe just stay there, and April fell asleep quickly as the morning study sessions drained any energy she would’ve had to stay awake past eight.

…

**He stood in front of her bed. His hand down his pants as he rapidly massaged his dick. His speed and grip like a powerful hammer against himself as he glared at her. He expressed his seed into a shirt and balled it up under April’s side of the bed. The creak of the floorboards was quickly becoming his calling card.**

            “Will?” April asked groggily into the dark.

April snapped the light on and looked around. No one was there. The musk assailed her nose and a horrible familiar feeling crept in. The ghost; the shadow of a person was back to haunt her again.

…

April was up early but not because she was meeting Alex; frankly she couldn’t sleep. She was worried about Will and feeling a little paranoid. Between the lying and the long days she was starting to question her sanity. What was that smell? Why did she always smell it when she could swear someone was around? How was the smell always around when Will wasn’t? She was fixated on those thoughts when the knocking at the front door snapped her out of it.

            “Alex? What are you doing here?”

His blues eyes were wide and excited.

            “Dr. Varis asked me to observe this morning! This is because of you! I just wanted to say thank you!” He exclaimed.

Before April could even respond, Alex had wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug. He rapidly pulled out of it only to pull her chin in even quicker to kiss her. He smashed his lips against hers and then he turned and skipped down the stairs of the brownstone. April stood stunned, but she had to laugh. The kiss wasn’t romantic, but cartoonish and comical. She just shook her head and shut the door.

Across the street Will watched with his hands in his pockets beside their car. He had just heard the worst news and now he was looking at an even worse sight. He got back into the car and drove back to the hospital.

…

Two Months Earlier

**“Inmate 378902 step forward,” the guard announced.**

**The clanging of shackles against the floor marked the shuffle of his footsteps.** **The door closed behind them and he sat down. The two men stared at each other not speaking.  Two very different men; one in a prison jumpsuit, the other in Armani. He opened a file and laced his fingers together setting them upon it.**

**“Who are you?”  The inmate asked; finally breaking the chill.**

**“Someone who wants to help you.”**

**“Why would you want to help me?”**

**“Because I’m also someone who has something in common with you."**

**“And what’s that?”**

**“Not what; who.”**

**He scoffed, “Alright, who?”**

**“April Sexton.”**


	5. Bury Your Fears

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> April's stupid secret has put undue stress on the young couple at the worst possible time; meanwhile The Watcher begins his campaign of harassment.

**He unbuttoned his shirt. He pulled the pink laced panties from his pocket. The small bow in the dip of the hem caught against his ring. Then he took off his pants as the woman knelt in front of him. He shook his head no and she stood up.**

**“Put these on.”**

**She slid them up over thighs. He handed her a piece of paper and she unfolded it.**

**“You want me to say this?”**

**He nodded and took her shoulders turning her around.**

**“Bend over.”**

**She honored the command.**

**“Read it.”**

**He used his tie to wrap around her throat. He slowly pulled his appendage out of boxers and began massaging it.**

**“Read it,” he growled.**

**“I am a stupid whore, I don’t deserve to be in your presence,” she started.**

**He let out a sigh as he tightened his grip around the tie. He quickened his pace against himself.**

**“I- I’m so sorry I ruined your life,” she continued through strained breath.**

**His hand was firmly gripped pounding against his thigh as he tightened the grip on the tie in unison with his climax. The woman dropped the paper on the bed and was now using both hands to clutch at her neck.**

**“Read it April!” he yelled through his labored breath.**

**“-Who...I-I can’t…I can’t breathe,” she said straining.**

**His hand continued to grip the tie not giving any slack as his other hand furiously pumped his member against his thigh. He released himself on the stolen panties. He eased up on the tie and the woman began to cough.**

**“The money is on coffee table, take off the underwear,” He said as he flicked his leftover venom onto her back.**

                                    

The mind can turn anything into a song. No matter the repetition one can twist anything to meet the uniqueness of the flow of music through their ears. That’s what Will had done with the beeping. It had turned to “Brown Eyed Girl” a song he learned to play on the guitar as he sang it to April. The beeping was a comfort. Until it rudely cut off and he was alone; truly alone. Bella had passed.

 _So hard to find my way_  
_Now that I'm all on my own_  
_I saw you just the other day_  
_My, how you have grown!_

…

Alex and Sunni popped over that evening. Cecily wasn’t invited even if she wanted to come along. They all decided to have a drink after their shift. Alex was still riding the wave of accomplishment over his impression with Dr. Varis; which also reminded him of his behavior.

            “So, earlier I was really excited, but I uh shouldn’t have kissed you,” he said stepping too closely into her comfort zone again.

            “Yeah-,” April began responding.

The door swung open and Will arrived cutting her off. He wasn’t in the mood for company. He nodded Sunni’s way and lingered on the proximity of April and Alex before heading to the kitchen. Sunni followed him.

            “William,” Sunni teased.

            “What do you know about Alex?” Will asked.

            “Like the rest of these jokers he’s a year behind me, he used to room with Xio Chan back at IU,” she said, “He’s scrawny and squeaky and how he managed to draw your wife into his web I have no idea.”

            “-Huh?”         

            “When he came over last Monday she all but talked him out of dropping out. Your wife is amazing Will,” Sunni revealed.

Will’s brow scrunched as he watched Alex continue to stare at April as she laughed.

            _“She said no one was here?”_ He thought.

            “So, have you been running with her?” Will asked Sunni.

He was now on a full-blown digging mission. Reconciling what he saw in the morning with her lies and a new hobby

            “Running? April?! Um no, when does she find the time? Privately tutoring Alex, meeting with us, running, being a wife.”

            “Privately meeting…,” Will stated casually.

A lump was forming in the back of his throat.

            “Yeah, early mornings, he owes her big.”

Will could feel heat from his stomach flush through his face as he felt angry and then a little sick. He wanted to march over and ask April why would she lie. Instead he went upstairs to collect his thoughts. Immediately his mind went to the running shoes. He bent down to grab them; a conversation starter to reveal the petty, sloppy, lies. If all they were doing was studying, she shouldn’t be lying. The loose clasp on his necklace slid apart and landed on the floor slipping past Will. He felt for it when his hands grabbed a shirt balled up on her side of the bed. When he opened it the large “I.U.” emblem for Indiana State University shined off the light. Or it would’ve but for the white -crusty film sticking parts of it together. Will knew exactly what it was; no postpubescent man would be confused. He sat there on the side of the bed staring at the floor through his legs. He didn’t realize how long until April came upstairs.

            “Hey, I was wondering where you went off to... everyone’s gone…Will,” April said as she walked closer to him.

He used one hand to stuff the shirt back to its hiding place. April sat down next to him on the floor. His eyes were still fixed on the grain of the wood floor.

            “Are you okay?”

He looked up and then over to her, staring at his home, his heart, his beloved. Was she still his? How could the key to heart give it to someone else? He reached his palm out to cup her face, but he grabbed it; quickly pulling it in.

            “Will ow-,” April started.

            “-I need you.”

His lips met hers; hard but passionate. His tongue plunging into her mouth to pillage the treasure he thought he was the only one to find.

            “Will-,” April said through the side of her mouth trying to catch her breath.

            “I love you so much,” he begged.

He pushed her to their floor and unzipped her jeans; pulling them off and then unbuttoning his own before he climbed on top of her.

            “Will ow-slow down,” April gasped.

He couldn’t hear her, and she could barely speak as he hastily shoved himself inside her; each grind; each deep heave of his pelvis clashing into hers; claiming her. April thought the weight of each blow would sink her into the floor. It wasn’t until she felt the softness hit her cheek did she open her eyes from the ramming to feel another drop dot her face. Will was staring at her as he melee’d her body; he was crying.

            “Will-,” April stammered.

He pushed his forehead against hers and whimpered as he let go and rolled off her. He covered his face in his hands as he sobbed.

**“Ask her Will, accuse her, tell her you know she’s a whore.”**

            “Dr. Rowan died this morning,” Will announced as he wiped his face.

            “Oh Will…,”

He stood up without another word and got into the shower. April sat on the floor as ambiguity over the situation took her back. Back to the moment when she ended her relationship with Connor. On the floor. The moment when her life almost ended; on the floor. And something ended between her and Will; on the floor. She just didn’t know what. She got up and ready herself for bed. April laid there in the dark until Will came in and laid next her. The silence between them screaming in agony.

            “Will, I am really sorry about Bella, but you can’t do that again.”

            “I know, I’m sorry.”

…

April had been here once before. Connor’s spiral was with alcohol but that wasn’t Will’s style. Frustration and anger were and last night; they hadn’t had an experience close to that since things had come to a head for them. She couldn’t let it get there and neither could he.

            “Not going home?”

            “It’s Will…he’s been different, I think he’s just been really upset about his mentor dying.”

            “Trouble in paradise?” Sunni asked, her eyebrow raised.

April gave her a playful smile, but she felt guilty she’d been lying to Will for weeks while his mentor died and now she felt disconnected from him. Now was still not the time to come clean.

           “Oh, to answer your question not really, I have to head straight to the funeral.”

            “Cool, remind me before I forget I have something crazy to tell you!” Sunni said before she skipped off.

April walked back to locker room and changed into a black shift dress and pair of sheer pantyhose and a black cardigan. She was placing her scrubs in her bag when her phone buzzed. She looked down.

_**“I want to tear that dress off you.”**_

April let out small gasp as she looked around. No one was in the room with her or, so she thought. She rounded the corners when it hit her again. That goddamn musk. She quickly turned and grabbed her things as her nametag, sunglasses, and compact fell from her bag. She collected them from the floor looking around suspiciously until she got to her car. The ride was met with more buzzing from her phone.

            **_“Don’t run from me.”_**

**_“I see you.”_ **

Across town Will was thinking about how horrible he felt inside; his worry; his suspicion; his grief. Sharon, Natalie, Maggie, and Daniel were all set to attend the funeral. April was running late as Will stared at his watch expectantly. They sat in the second row of the church as April slid in and sat next to Will. He looked over to her, but his face looked tight. She intertwined her fingers into his, but he didn’t squeeze back.

            “Thank you all for coming today as we honor the life Dr. Bella Rowan. I will begin with a prayer. The Lord is my shepherd and I shall-,” the pastor began.

BZZZZZZ.

April’s phone went off. The entire row shot daggers her way as she pulled it out.

            **_“I want you now.”_**

More from the unknown number as she used her fingers to press the button down firmly to shut her phone off. Will’s eyes stared at the message before the screen went black. April caught his stare as embarrassment, confusion, and shame muddied their non-verbal communication. Will’s jaws clenched as the service continued. Immediately after the service concluded Will walked out.

            “Will I’m sorry about that-,” she started.

            “-I can’t do this right now,” Will said as he walked to his car.

April stood there confused. Something more was going on with him and she needed to know why so she sped over.

            “Will.”

He stopped and stood in front of his car.

            “I’ll meet you at the burial site,” April said as she was turning away.

            “No, just go home, we’ll talk later.”

He opened the door and got in and drove away. April stood in the road trying to figure out what was going on with him and the ever-increasing creepy texts and eerie smells.

…

Will stood at the site longer than anyone else. He stayed as they broke down the tent, the awning, the astroturf around the casket, and folded up the chairs.

            “Don’t push her away Will.”

He turned around and there stood Natalie.

            “Nat.”

            “She should be here, I saw you send her home.”

Will just stared at the casket.

            “Don’t push her away, she’s the love of your life.”

            “Am I hers?”

Natalie looked stunned and then her eyes softened. Will walked away and then to his car.

…

April didn’t obey the command to go home she turned her phone on and texted Sunni.

            “Why aren’t you with Will?” Sunni asked.

            “He didn’t want me there….,” April replied dryly.

            “Oh damn, he sent you home!?”

            “My stupid phone has been going off all day…It went off in the middle of the prayer. Sunni I think I’m losing my mind.”

            “Everyone in medical school is losing their mind,” Sunni commented.

            “No, I feel like I’m seeing things, and I swear sometimes I feel like someone is there and then no one is….,” April said trailing off.

Sunni lifted her eyebrow and stared curiously at her friend.

            “-And I’ve been getting these weird messages from an Unknown number.”

            “I get those all the time-,”

            “-Whoever texted me knew I was wearing a dress right after I put it on.”

            “It’s probably just someone messing with you, maybe one of the other intern stooges who can’t touch Sexton-greatness.”

April gave her a half smile, but the worry held in her eyes. Sunni let out a sigh.

            “Here,” she said as she snatched April’s phone.

She tapped a few buttons before saying.

            “Voila, blocked, all better, now what’s going on with Will?”

            “I don’t know, and I probably would if I hadn’t been lying so much.”

            “What?! You?! Lying to Will…about what?” Sunni asked; shocked April was even capable of it.

            “I’ve been telling him I’ve been running when I’ve been tutoring Alex.”     

Sunni’s mouth got wide and then went into an exaggerated frown.

            “C’mon it’s not like I’m out robbing banks or anything.”

            “No, April I think I stepped in it…I didn’t mean to,” Sunni bashfully admitted.

            “What do you mean?”

            “I told Will yesterday that you’ve been tutoring Alex…privately, why does he care?”

            “He doesn’t trust Alex, he thinks he likes me.”

            “He _does_ , but who cares it’s not like you like Alex…or do you?” Sunni questioned mischievously.

            “No!” April laughed, “He just reminds him of someone who caused a lot of problems for us in the past.”

            “OH! You were supposed to remind me! Okay are we done with your thing?”

April nodded. At least she knew why Will was distant and maybe a little angry. She would have a lot of groveling to do.

            “Remember Mr. Northwestern-Body-Like-A-God I was supposed to go on a date with?”

April nodded.

            “Well I met up with him, we casually discuss ourselves I tell him I’m a brilliant doctor and he does something not as impressive, but it doesn’t matter because I’m wet and he’s hard and we both know what this is. We go up to his place; some high-rise with floor to ceiling windows, and he tears my clothes off slams me against the window and screws my knickers off! April, he snakes his hand around my throat as he is banging me and then it hits me who reminds me of!”

April was shaking her head trying to contain her laughter.

           “You know him, really hot,he was your year, you guys were lab partners. Anyway he took some time off of school kind of like you did, geesh they really did a number on you guys that year, April are you listening? Anyway, he’s coming back, and I talked to some people to help pull some strings, so he could get into the intern program here and hopefully match so like we’ll all be reunited again! Isn’t that awesome?!”

But April wasn’t listening anymore the tiny point her sanity rested upon had beckoned her. April had travelled so many miles away as her mind narrowed to that tiny point. The same tiny point that dropped her into her bubble with Will during her attack. Her safety-net.

            “April, April did you hear me? Parker Sandavish is going to be here so we’re going to have some eye candy to look at!” Sunny squealed,  “Anyway, I got to go but let me know how things go with William."

April was frozen as she walked to her car. Autopilot drove her home; parked her car, and assisted her climb up the stairs to the brownstone.

The door opened slowly, and Will came in. He set his keys down.

            “Al, we need to talk.”

            “Al…,” 


	6. Climbing The Walls

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will confronts April about Alex.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I OD'd on angst in this chapter.

_He could feel the dry-slip of dust as the iridescence caught the light. The light dust of her make-up between his fingers. Ethan stared at them, confused at first until he wiped at April’s arms. The thick make-up lifted easily from the alcohol soaked cotton-ball. Time slipped by slowly as he cleaned off the make-up on her neck, her arms, her face. The coolness of the liquid sending painful shivers through her. They stayed quiet as he deconstructed the façade she so eloquently put together for work._

_“Where, um-where else did you put on make-up?” Ethan asked._

_“Everywhere visible.”_

_He nodded as another cotton ball lightly glided over her pained throat. He took out his stethoscope and brought it to her back._

_“Take a deep breath for me.”_

_“I can’t… it hurts too much, I uh- I heard them crack,” April whispered._

_“I need to take a scan but-, do you want another nurse here, a woman? Maybe Maggie?” he offered._

_“No.”_

_Ethan nodded as he carefully cut the back of her scrub top off. He tried not to, but he gasped. He’d seen everything. Mangled body parts, bullet holes gaping through otherwise pristine skin, impalements, vomit, and all kinds viscous human fluids, but this was different. April hadn’t seen it, but her back was tormented with marks. Even through her dark skin the stains of bruises wrapped around her like a cruel corset. There were two more ugly welts to the front of her. Ethan put the small x-ray machine up behind her and took the scan. When he turned to read it, he took in an eyeful of her. Her body told the story; the slither of gaps revealing her skin between bruises on neck; choked. The faint discolorations he carefully uncovered on her wrists; held down._

_“Should I page someone from OB,” he asked._

_April’s eyes were on the floor before they shot up._

_“No! I just feel stupid I had too much to drink and I-uh I fell down the stairs of my apartment,” April lied._

_“Stairs don’t leave fingerprints on your wrists or like the ones left on your neck, so I’m going to ask again, April, do I need to order a rape kit?”_

_“No,” April answered defiantly._

_They locked eyes for the second time, but this was a part of the story April could not let him read. Her eyes turned to stone and he realized that whatever she was hiding he couldn’t get to it._

_“Okay,” he whispered softly as he sat on the stool in front of her, “You have two cracked ribs; eight on the interior and nine distally from the sternum. They will heal but you need to give it time; a few weeks should do the trick, I can prescribe pain meds to help you with mobility.”_

_April’s eyes eased, and she nodded._

_“I’m going to find you something easier to put on, and then we need to contact the authorities.”_

_“No, I told you it was an accident-,” April croaked._

_Ethan’s jaw tightened._

_“-April do you have any idea how serious this is? Those marks are your neck did not come from the stairs, this coloring here says this happened anywhere from forty-eight to seventy-two hours ago.” He said pointing to the disturbing bruising on her neck._

_“During that time, you could’ve died from lack of blood flow to your brain, regardless of when you managed to get away. You should’ve come in and you would’ve if those were stairs,” he lectured._

_The tears welled April’s eyes as she looked down._

_“April, if you don’t call the police; I will find him myself.”_

…       

Some people can thrive in chaos. Their apartments are disorganized, clothes in disarray, no real way to tell what’s clean or dirty. Mail stacked by the door fighting for free space on cluttered surfaces with used glasses and dirty dishes. Those strange creatures still arrive to work on time and they can be relied upon to perform complex tasks and execute important responsibilities. This used to be April. During her first year of medical school and working as a nurse her life felt like utter chaos. But after the original year was over she found herself back to order even after it was destroyed. After her attack.

Strict order and time had become something that went hand in hand with were her success in school, life, and her ability to come to grips with her assault. It was a tool and ultimately, she realized it was a way to feel in control. It was the realization she’d come to as she stared at a tiny spider weaving a web at five in the morning. It had found a little home in the corner of the kickplate past the dishwasher. Staring at it as she wondered if the world she had weaved for herself even existed. If control was only a feeling and not a reality.

Will rolled over to the cool empty spot his wife should’ve inhabited. A moment of anger flooded him and forced him awake. He couldn’t believe it. Even after what she told him last night about Parker’s return she still got up to seek refuge from her lover and not her husband. He huffed quietly as he got up to use the restroom and practically stomped his way down the stairs. To his surprise she was at the table. Unmoving.

            “How long have you been awake?” Will asked.

His voice didn’t match the anger he initially felt but he was still annoyed. April looked over to the stove and her eyes went a little wide before settling back to the tiny arachnid carefully crafting its home.

            “Um-since three,” she answered flatly.

Will sat down and stared at her, if there had been two other occupants at the table it would’ve been his need to ask about Alex. The other seat; a sleeping infant, an infant that would grow in untamable size, who held her panic, her fear, her rage.

            “I called Jay, he said he would look into it…did Sunni say anything else?”

            “I texted her after we spoke last night…she said he starts next week.”

Lover or no lover Will still loved April and his hands would not allow his anger to cloud the need to comfort her. He reached across the table to touch her, but she flinched. His brow furrowed at her and she looked back to the spider.

            “Can I not touch you anymore?” Will asked; frustrated and confused.

April turned her gaze back to him.

            “You’re asking for permission now?” she snapped back as she stood up to make coffee.

            “I said I was sorry,” Will stated, but he his anger was no longer hidden.

April stayed silent as she poured the beans into the grinder. The loud noise agitating the silence.

            “Maybe you could go for a run, I find it helps clear my mind,” he stated condescendingly.

April turned off the grinder.

            “I guess I’m sorry too,” April said quietly as she grabbed the filters.

Will scoffed and nodded his head.

            “Right.”

            “You know, this is why I didn’t want to do this, to get into _this_!” April snapped back as she turned to Will.

            “Because you’ve been lying for weeks about what you do with your mornings?!” Will yelled back.

            “You know Will, I am doing really well in this program, and I thought I would help someone else out, but I didn’t want to be told no!”

            “See, that’s what makes this so ugly; you knew I wasn’t comfortable with it and you did it anyways!”

            “You mean like what you did to me on the floor two nights ago!”

            “I said I was sorry April! I am not Parker, you may have forgotten but you’re my wife and I feel like you haven’t been, especially when I needed you!”

            “Me or my body?!”

            “Both! I am not the enemy here April, I wanted to feel close to you, to feel like you were still mine! Are you?”

            “What?”

Will walked over to April and grabbed her hand and sped them to the bedroom. April stood outside the doorway as Will walked over to the side of the bed and drug out her running shoes, they were dusty and unused.

            “It was stupid of me to lie about tutoring Alex. I’m sorry Will, but he isn’t dangerous.”

Will turned again and grabbed the IU shirt stuffed behind her bedside table. April looked at it confused.

            “Anything else you want to tell me?”

April was still confused.

            “Has he been here when I wasn’t home?”

            “Yes.”

Will nodded again as anger continued to rule his tone.

            “That’s it…nothing else you want to tell me?” he probed.

            “Will I’m not sure what else you think there is to tell?” April answered honestly.

            “So, you’re telling me that you just got up in the mornings to tutor him and when he was here nothing happened between the two of you?”

            “Yes, Will that’s what I’m saying…why is that so hard for you to believe?”

He threw the shirt at her as she quickly caught it.

            “Um…gross.”

She was still confused.

            “He was never in our bed with you? That’s not his alma mater?” Will continued grilling her.

April was shocked, “NO!- I mean yes this is his or maybe not. I don’t know and I’m not sure where that came from and I don’t understand how you can go from tutoring to an affair in a single leap.”

            “Because you lied to me, there is god knows what smeared all over that shirt, empty bottles of beer when you claimed no one was here, you’re leaving at all hours, and my personal favorite, Alex kissing you on our goddamn stoop Al!”

April stood stunned. She’d forgotten all about that because frankly it meant nothing.

            “That was a mistake, he apologized for that.”

            “So, the strange hair in our bed is also a coincidence?”

            “Okay, fine you have your mind made up,” April said through a quivered lip, “I don’t know about that shirt or the hair or why you’d think I could sleep with someone else. I am sorry about lying about the tutoring and I was blind to the fact that he had a crush on me but Will…please believe me…I could never do that to you.”

He stared into those large chestnut eyes, at her pleading, but a feeling was beginning to resurrect within him and he needed time before he could fully absorb everything. Will walked passed her to the closet and without a word he changed into his running gear and took off. When the door slammed April sat at the edge of bed in tears. Parker’s entrance was bringing up all the ghosts she thought she and Will had long rid themselves of but here they were.


	7. How?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> How did Parker get out of jail? Will searches for answers and April searches for a way out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry I haven't updated in a while but I will have more later this week! Things are getting dark for our beloved Sexstead. I apologize for any omissions, typos, or errors!

Will’s run carried him through his normal route. Past the CVS, past the bar with the ever present sweet-rotted smell, to his runners high around the corner. But it wasn’t there. So, he kept going, kept pushing, past cupcake shops, dog grooming services, gas stations, restaurants, more bars, boutiques, and law offices. Barbers, bakers, grocery stores. He was no longer in their neighborhood. He was in his brothers. The runners high never came. Just the adrenaline escaping through each tap to the call button on Jay’s door.

“Can I help you?” he asked.

The irritation in his voice was apparent.

            “It’s me,” Will growled back.

The buzz sounded, and Will went upstairs.

            “Ugh man you stink…what are doing all the way over here?” Jay asked as he waved his hand back and forth at Will’s odor.

            “What did you find out?” Will asked urgently.

            “I could have picked you up,” Jay answered.

Jay walked over to his couch and plopped down. He bent over and slid a box out from under the coffee table.

“I asked Peter Stone if he could get me anything and he got me this.”

Jay pulled a file out. The same worn looking filed that contained April’s pain years ago; a pain that Will had been too sickened to read.

 “I’m going to get my ass handed to me for this,” Jay said as he shook his head back and forth.

He handed Will a DVD, but he had to give it back immediately as this case was sensitive enough and doing this favor could cost him his job, his pension, his career. He dropped Will off and when he went inside; April was gone.

…

She felt like a spy, an imposter, a crook in her own hospital. She was ducking and dodging anyone she knew until she made it to the administrators’ office.

            “Name please,” the woman at the front desk stated.

She wasn’t even looking at April she was typing on her computer.

            “April Sexton…medical student,” she answered.

April slid her badge across the counter and the woman grabbed it and scanned it.

            “Alright Ms. Sexton what can we do for you today?”

            “I need to see the provost _today_ ,” she stated.

            “Uh-not without an appointment,” the woman answered.

She was looking at April as if she had asked for a million dollars.

            “Please…it’s an emergency.”

The woman looked April up and down, judging the statuesque beauty until she met her eyes and could see the panic and desperation.

            “Okay,” she huffed, “Let me see if there are any openings.”

April gave her a tight smile as she looked on hopefully.

            “You are one lucky girl, she had a cancellation… she’ll be free at five o’clock.”

April nodded and took the appointment.

            “ _A lucky girl_ ,” April thought before she scoffed.

The cruel irony of it all. Lucky would mean graduating early, lucky would mean no more fighting with her husband. Lucky would mean Parker would not be walking these very halls. Lucky would mean none of this would be happening or ever had happened to begin with.

            “April!”

She knew that voice, it was Sunni, someone she didn’t mind seeing. until she turned around.

            “Hey-,” she began breathlessly.

He was standing right next to her. His hair was different, no longer the dapper suave cut it was long; just barely grazing his shoulders. He still had impeccably flawless olive skin although a bit washed out. And something else in his eyes that would give away his two-year absence; rage. Their twisted secret sat in those eyes.

            “Look who I ran into!” Sunni said excitedly.

She was completely oblivious to April’s frozen stance and Parkers hateful gaze. Until she wasn’t. Sunni was having a party except she was the only one having fun.

            “I was just showing Parker around a little…,” Sunni started before looking to the both of them, “I thought you two would be happier to see one another being lab partners and all,” she finished as she folded her arms.

Parker’s gaze melted into a sinister smile.

            “Of course, it’s great to see you April, but I gotta keep looking around if I’m ever going to catch up,” he said casually as he walked passed her.

            “Oh yeah it’s a rough program the students are under,” Sunni stated with a smile.

            “I’ll have to work hard to catch up,” he said.

            “Oh, that reminds me, come to our study group next week!”

Parker nodded and then walked away. April stood frozen in the hall as urine began trailing down her leg.

            “What is your deal weirdo, I’ve got to get back to rounds… I’ll see you later,” Sunni said still confused by April’s demeanor.

She stood there paralyzed in her fear and then looked down at the pool of urine beneath her. She made a beeline to the bathroom and rinsed her face with water and tried to absorb the wetness on her leg.

            “You’re okay, you’re okay, you’re okay,” she whimpered, “You’re going to get through this. You are stronger than Parker,” she broke down crying at the name.

April splashed more water upon her face, dried it with a paper towel and took a deep breath in and then out and walked out of the bathroom. The creak of a stall door opened, and Cecily walked out.

April hid out in her car until her appointment with the Provost.

…

            **_“State your full name for the record.”_**

_“Parker Elias Sandavish,” he said confidently._

_**“In your own words can you tell me what happened on the night of May 16 th 2015.”**_

_“I was supposed to go out with a group of my friends and I was asked to invite April Sexton; she and I were lab partners and she seemed okay, so I invited her out and gave her my number to call me if she wanted to meet up with us,” Parker stated._

_**“Who is us?”**_

_“Sunni Parminder, Christopher Jackson, Xio Chan, and Alex Murray.”_

_**“So, did April join your group?”**_

_“No, April declined the offer but called later that afternoon to invite me to hang out with some of her co-workers,” Parker stated._

_**“One Jeffrey Clarke, Natalie Manning, Keith Howard, Maggie Lockwood, Casey Kepner, and Will Halstead.”**_

_“Yeah, I’d never met them until that night.”_

_**“Keith Howard and Jeff Clarke both stated that you said, and I quote ‘That’s where we all hope to end up but maybe not to sleep,’ after Mr. Howard had expressed interest in going to bed, can you elaborate on what you meant.”**_

_“I was just agreeing with him, he seemed really fond of his date Maggie and she of him, so I thought maybe more was going to happen between them.”_

_**“So, your comment was not about expressing sexual interest in Ms. Sexton?”**_

_“No sir,” Parker stated confidently._

_**“Can you please state what happened next?”**_

_“I walked April home and I asked to use her restroom, when I got out she offered me some water. I knew that I was still supposed to meet my friends, so I declined. She insisted. We were standing when she tried to kiss me. I stopped her because I was going to leave.”_

_**“Ms. Sexton claims you tried to kiss her.”**_

_“That’s not true. She grabbed the loops of my jeans and pulled me in and pushed her lips against mine, she said that she wanted to make up for her how rude her friend had been and then she unzipped my pants…I pushed her back…I was shocked at how fast she was moving. That’s when she got mad and slapped me.”_

_**“There are pictures the police took of Ms. Sexton and a physical she had at the hospital. Can you explain how she ended up with her injuries?”**_

_“Yeah…. I’m not proud of that. I hit her back, but she slapped me, and she wasn’t responding to no. That’s when she went to slap me again and I just lost it…I mean your parents, your friends, no one tells you what to do if a woman tries to assault you…there’s no handbook on how to handle it.”_

_**“How did she get the ligature-like marks around her neck?”**_

_“After I hit her she fell against a table she had some stuff on and she grabbed a pair of scissors and came at me…at that point I feared for my life and I didn’t know when or if she would stop so I got control of the scissors, we landed on the ground and I just panicked…I didn’t have a weapon; just my hands, so I choked her,” Parker pleaded._

_**“The neighbor says that you knocked her over when you came out, can you tell me why?”**_

_“When I heard her neighbor, I was just relieved that someone was there, but I was still freaked out. I just needed to get out of there.”_

_**“Why are you recanting your original statement?”**_

_“I was supposed to be a doctor, the first in my family. I was scared, but it isn’t right. I didn’t do anything wrong and that detective was sure I was guilty…she scared me,” he admitted._

_**“Detective Lindsey?”**_

_“Yeah…she was really angry and aggressive and kept calling me a coward and saying that real men don’t hit women…I knew she would never believe me…”_

The tape stopped. If Will didn’t know April or the truth of the situation he would’ve been apt to believe it. Parker was extremely convincing, and he had an answer for everything.

            “She waited until the weekend to tell anyone about the attack, so it looks like she could have been the aggressor, the reason she was found out was because of Dr. Choi…listen, is there anything else…anything that I don’t know that can help?” Jay asked.

Will shook his head. He had stopped by to talk to Will and get his smuggled evidence back.

            “That day at the coffee shop you asked if he had-,” Jay started.

            “-NO!” Will shot back.

The clap of the door was the only sound louder than Will.

            “What are we yelling about?” April asked as she sat her purse on the sofa-table.

Will glared at Jay as the two stood; locked in eye contact.

            “Nothing…I’ll see you later April,” Jay said as he left.

He gave April a light pat on the shoulder and then made a weird face when he sniffed the air. The door snapped closed, and April stood staring at Will.

            “Will…what’s going on?” April asked

            “I had to figure out how…how, how in the hell could Parker have gotten out of his sentence,” Will started, “I guess he appealed and won.”

            “I don’t understand.”

            “After my brother’s partner left the force she left with some red in her ledger,” Will admitted.

            “She got way too rough on a suspect…shoved a gun in his mouth, some piece of garbage, but Internal Affairs has been breathing down everyone necks…they started reviewing any cases that she’d been on in the last few years. Mostly confessions. Your case was on the list. This hot-shot defense attorney asked to review them, and he contacted Parker. The evidence collected could easily fit the story Parker made up and couple that with Erin’s resignation and the accusations, and April...everyone who helped…they were all either our friends or family.”

            “So, it looks biased…they think I’m a liar-,” April started.

            “No, no, but the evidence is circumstantial…and you slapped him really hard. His mug shot shows a mark.”

            “So, it’s ‘he said she said’,” April stated as tears welled in her eyes.

            “Yeah,” Will answered as he pulled her towards him.

            “I’m going to talk to Goodwin first thing tomorrow and see about getting you to Med.”

            “Will I can’t, I asked, I forgot-,” April started as her chin quivered.

            “What, forgot what?” Will asked stepping back from her.

            “I had to work my tail off to catch up and even be allowed to start where I left off in my program, what they did for me they don't normally do for people in Med school, but part of that had to be a commitment on my end to stay. I signed an academic contract stating I would stay at U of CM …otherwise I don’t receive my degree…ever,” April said before bursting into tears.

Will closed the gap between them and pulled April in; setting his head atop hers.

            “We’ll figure this out okay…,” Will said bending down to cup her face, “You’re not alone this time. I’m not going to let him hurt you again.”

He laid a kiss atop her forehead as they walked up to their bedroom to try and sleep.


End file.
